


Protect Your Own

by The13books



Series: The Fight Does Go On [1]
Category: Bleach
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Attempt at Humor, Chaos, Character Study, Feels, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Found Family, Friendship, Gen, Humor, Not Every Character is Queer but the Writer Is Not Overly Interested In Being Polite or Heterosexual, POV Female Character, Shapeshifting, Strong Female Characters, TW: A character gets disowned, TW: a mental breakdown?, Tags Are Hard, Tags May Change, The Quincy, This is mostly from Yoruichi's POV FYI, Yoruichi is both Aromantic and Pansexual, Yoruichi is usually in her cat form, alone like everybody else, being a little shit is half the fun of being alive, no beta we die like men, the other half is being with your precious people, urahara shoten - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-18
Updated: 2021-01-24
Packaged: 2021-03-13 05:48:26
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 2,910
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28773354
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/The13books/pseuds/The13books
Summary: Yoruichi has a lot to fight for.
Relationships: Inoue Orihime & Shihouin Yoruichi, Ishida Uryuu & Kurosaki Ichigo, Kurosaki Ichigo & Shihouin Yoruichi, Shihouin Yoruichi & Urahara Kisuke
Series: The Fight Does Go On [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2109567
Comments: 2
Kudos: 17





	1. Ichigo and Uryuu

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ichigo and Uryuu have an important conversation with Yoruichi's help.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

>   
>  My brain kept writing Ishida instead of Uryuu, but neither Yoruichi nor Ichigo give any fucks about propriety. 
> 
> Also, for those who don't know, Goat Face is Ichigo's dad.

Yoruichi had not been expecting Ichigo to come into the shop, wild-eyed and nervous, just to ask for help finding Uryuu.

That being said, Kisuke was busy creating objects of chaos in the lab, and Tessai was on "Keep-Kisuke-From-Dying" Duty, so she would have to be the one to help. She left the shop in Ururu's capable hands. 

-

As Yoruichi leapt off the counter and spread her senses out to her surroundings to try to locate Uryuu, she checked with Ichigo about her hunch that this wasn't an emergency. 

He immediately looked a bit sheepish and as they walked, he explained the situation.

"I never really questioned it, but what with the whole Goat Face being a Shinigami thing, my mom must've been somehow involved with the spiritual world. Looking back, when mom died she must've known enough to be able to save me from Grand Fisher."

"What prompted this, Ichigo?"

"I was cleaning the attic out with my sisters and I found a Quincy cross and some distinctly Quincy clothing among mom's old things. I know Uryuu is having trouble dealing with being one of the last Quincy, and I want my sisters to know how to defend themselves without having to be stabbed with a sword. I won't always be here to protect them. I'm just nervous Uryuu will take it as an insult or something". 

"He seems to be in that park. Do you want me to come with you to help smooth things over if necessary?"

Ichigo looked incredibly grateful and accepted Yoruichi's offer. As they entered the park, Uryuu could be seen sewing under a tree. 

Ichigo took a deep breath and buried his hands in his pockets.

"I will be here if you need anything." With that last comment, Yoruichi ran past Uryuu, climbed the tree, and kept watch from her spot on one of its limbs.

-

Ichigo took out a Quincy cross from one of his pockets and sat down. Uryuu immediately stiffened. 

After giving it to Uryuu for him to examine and confirm that it really was a functional Quincy cross, Ichigo told Uryuu about its origins and the implications of said origins. 

After some intense emotions for both teens, an awkward but affectionate hug, and an eyeroll, Uryuu gladly agreed to train Ichigo's sisters in the ways of the Quincy. 

\- 

A few days later, Ichigo came into the shop, scooped Yoruichi up, and thanked her for her help. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ichigo: If I had a nickel for every time I got stabbed in order to get powers, I would have at least three nickels, which isn't a lot, but it's weird it's happened so many times.


	2. Orihime

Yoruichi watched from her spot in the sun as Orihime walked into the shop. Yoruichi took one last moment to absorb the wondrous heat of the sun, then stood up and followed her in. Before going to the training room, she stopped by her room to grab a bag full of snacks and rocks, and left it a fully clothed human (After so many months of training, the discomfort of fighting and training naked has outweighed Orihime's decreasingly entertaining reaction). 

-

When Yoruichi finally descended into the training area, Orihime had just finished stretching. After a quick check that the room was fully stocked with training dummies, a rock flew directly at Orihime's head.

"Reject!"

The rock bounced off a materialized shield.

Yoruichi couldn't help but grin. It seemed that Orihime had finally gotten enough control to summon defensive barriers without using the entire activation phrase.

She darted in for a physical attack after tossing a rock at one of the practice dummies.

"Reject!" (the dummy was safe... for now)

Orihime ducked under a roundhouse kick. 

Yoruichi flash-stepped away to throw another rock, rushed Orihime with another attack, and threw another rock.

"Reject!"

Orihime dodged -"Reject!"- the punch.

\- 

Yoruichi was helping her actively use barriers in combat but also insisted she teach her to dodge and block attacks without the aid of the barriers. 

-

After the training session, they sat together eating the snacks from Yoruichi's bag- She had learned that if she did not provide snacks, Orihime would. Orihime had a very unique style of cooking and its products were to be avoided at all costs. Besides, Orihime always got excited about the Pocky. 

As she got up to leave, Orihime turned back to Yoruichi.

"Hey, thank you. You have no idea how much this means to me. Before you started training me I was so scared that I was worthless, that the fact I don't want to hurt people was holding me back, that I would always be the one protected, unable to be the protector. You have shown me how to protect my precious people in my way, not everybody else's. I hope you know I count you as one of my precious people, Yoruichi-Sensei."

Yoruichi grumbled as she swung one arm over Orihime's shoulder and tousled her hair with the other. 

"Yeah, you too kiddo. And please quit it with the sensei!"

"Never! You and Ichigo-chan are so annoyed by titles, that I have to bestow them!"


	3. Chad

Yoruichi was considering going hunting for a bird when Chad entered the shop. She perked up and headed to the park near the shop. After a few minutes, Chad arrived with a blanket under one arm and a small bag in the other. 

She and Chad had come to an arrangement after she realized that whenever he missed Mexico or his Abuelo, he would come to the shop to buy candy that was as close to what he ate in Mexico as possible.

He and Yoruichi had a lot in common. They both missed places that might as well be other worlds. At least she could sneak to Soul Society every few hundred years. The closest he could get to home was some candy or speaking in Spanish.

Of course she offered to sit with him and keep him company when he was feeling particularly homesick or nostalgic. Hence the system of going to the park after he bought candy.

She would make sure to be in cat form for these meetings (Animals had always seemed to be more comforting to most people than humans).

Chad would let her sit in his lap as he pet her and spoke in Spanish and ate candy. 

She didn't understand Spanish, but that was beside the point. 

Sometimes, if she was feeling reminiscent and Chad wasn't in the mood to speak (which was often), she would tell a story about Yuushiro or Soi Fon and how she wished she hadn't had to leave them. 


	4. Why Isshin Kurosaki Was Kicked Out

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hint: it's because Ichigo was done with his shit.

As she approached the Kurosaki Clinic, she felt hesitant to intrude. Isshin had come to the Shoten, and after 5 minutes of increasingly annoying dramatics about how cruel his son was, he eventually got to the point and asked if he could sleep there. With him settled for the night (thank the Soul King for Ururu and Tessai), Yoruichi wanted to check up on the rest of the Kurosaki family and see if they needed anything. 

-

When she arrived at the Clinic, she entered through Ichigo's window, which was open as usual. She casually left Ichigo's room and went down the stairs in search of any of the Clinic's residents.

-

She eventually found them all in the kitchen drinking some tea, along with Ishida. When she entered, Yuzu notice her and immediately brightened.

"Hello pretty kitty! Would you like some snacks?"

"Yes, please"

"I'll get some set up for you! Karin, could you get another plate out?"

"Sure."

Ichigo and Uryuu blinked in confusion at the twin's lack of reaction to a talking cat. Their faces were hilarious. They weren't quite old enough to realize that children were far more likely to accept those sorts of things. Even talking cats. 

-

Now that she had a seat and had eaten a delicious piece of fish, Yoruichi decided to address her reason for coming to visit in the first place. 

"Is everything okay? Isshin came into the Shoten blubbering for a while an-

"Yeah, Goat Face was annoying Uryuu and I was pissed. Told him to stop bein a dick and that he couldn't stay in the clinic tonight. Figured it might help him reconsider his words and actions."

Yoruichi tilted her head to signal that she was a bit confused about Ichigo's drastic measures. They both ignored Uryuu's glare at being referred to so casually with practiced ease.

Uryuu sighed, "A while ago, Ichigo-san discovered that his mother was a Quincy. He asked that I train his sisters in our ways and I agreed. My fath-, Well," Uryuu pushed up his glasses. "Ishida-san found out. As you know, he holds a grudge against the Shinigami. He has disowned me for 'teaching Shinigami about the secrets of the Quincy'. When I explained about their heritage, he still insisted that their father was Shinigami and they weren't to be trusted. He offered to not disown me if I stopped teaching them. I refused. "

"He got an hour to pack his stuff, then he was kicked out of his own goddamn house. When he came by to ask if he could stay with us while he searched for a new place, the twins immediately dragged him into the house."

"Of course we did."

"Ishida-Sensei is awesome!"

Uryuu grimaced. "It's not Ishida anymore." It was clear that he wasn't comfortable with the subject of the conversation. The least Yoruichi could do was change the topic. 

"So you kicked Isshin out just for annoying Uryuu?"

"Nah. I was pissed at him for lots of reasons. It was just the last thing in a long list. For example, never told us that mom was a Quincy. When he found out why Uryuu was staying with us, he insisted that Uryuu stop training the twins and go back to...Roken? rukeen? rukon? -I don't know what your shit stain of a sperm donor's name is, Uryuu- So I kicked his ass out and told him not to come back tonight. Uryuu already made his godamn decision. We just gotta back him up and make sure he doesn't regret it."

"Do you want me to kick his ass?"

"Who, Ishida-san or Kurosaki-san?"

Yoruichi just tilted her head and flicked her tail in response. They were just teenagers. Their parents were adults and should have been the ones more mature and responsible. She wanted to avenge them. 

"Either way, I would rather you not fight Ishida-san without reason, Yoruichi-sensei. You would simply be proving him right."

Uryuu looked at Ichigo and raised an eyebrow. 

"I can take on Goat Face on my own, thanks."

...

"Fine. If you need me for anything tonight, I will be keeping watch on the roof."

After affectionately nuzzling Karin, Yuzu, Ichigo, and Uryuu, Yoruichi headed back to Ichigo's room so she could get back outside, while still having the advantage of being on the second floor. 

-

It was a quiet night. There were no attacks. But she felt Uryuu's reiatsu check for her and Ichigo's at least twice. 

Yoruichi was sure there would be many more important conversations in the morning, but for now, she was just glad to be able to help in some way.


	5. The Retrieval of One Urahara Kisuke

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tessai was the one who had been keeping Kisuke from dying during the past week of his newest inventing Binge. That meant she was the one who had Retrieval duty.

"Kisuke has gone over seven day limit again? Fuck."

"I've been on Kisuke duty all week."

"I know, Tessai. I remember the Agreement. I'll go tell Ururu and Jinta to prepare for a Retrieval."

Yoruichi sighed and went to find the 'kids'. 

-

After herding them into the kitchen and informing them of the impending Retrieval, Ururu shyly wished her luck and went to prepare some nourishing food, while Jinta made some tea. 

Yoruichi squared her shoulders and prowled to Kisuke's Laboratory. 

-

When she entered, she was unsurprised to see that not only was Kisuke manically working with some suspiciously green liquids, he was also so absorbed in his work that he did not acknowledge or seem to notice her. As soon as he put down the beaker in his hand to write some notes, Yoruichi sprang into action.

She leapt into the air and kicked him in the back of his knees. 

As his legs buckled, she tried to scoop him up.

Kisuke startled, regained his bearings, and jumped away.

"Kisuke it has been a week, you know the rules! You have to take care of yourself."

"No need to worry, Yoruichi, I'm almost done. Give me five more days"

Yoruichi narrowed her eyes as Kisuke got out a fan and hid his facial expression, using his eyes to express forced cheerfulness.

He was not going to come willingly. She needed to knock him out. At least she had the advantage of having eaten or slept or drank _anything_ within the past week. Why did so many of her idiots lack self preservation skills?

She leapt at him and feinted to the left.

He dodged. 

This was going to be an annoying fight. 

-

An hour later she carried Kisuke's unconscious form into his room and tucked him in. 


	6. Tessai and Yoruichi Drink Some Well Deserved Tea

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> They sit and chat over some tea because damn Kisuke is an intense, dramatic bitch.

After finally putting Kisuke into bed, Yoruichi hurried to where she knew tea and rational company were waiting. 

When she entered the kitchen, she saw Tessai walk in with tea tray. She raised an eyebrow. 

"Jinta didn't follow through. He pushes too much of his work onto Ururu."

She sighed and ran a hand through her hair.

"Thank you, Tessai"

He nodded, sat, and motioned to the other chair. 

Yoruichi dropped into the chair and started pouring tea. 

-

Yoruichi was glad she and Tessai had this ritual after Removals. It allowed her to process genuinely fighting a person she cared about in a safe environment. 

She quietly drank tea, simply enjoying the company of an old friend. 

Eventually, she broke the silence. 

"I thought he was doing better."

Tessai frowned and patted Yoruichi's hand.

"I know that when it comes to mental health, it is natural to have setbacks. Fuck. I have had my share of setbacks and so have you. It had just been so long since he regressed so far. I was so hopeful."

"It'll be okay, Yoruichi. The three of us have always made it through."

Yoruichi grinned.

"How optimistic of you... Of course, how could I forget, you are in a good mood because you did not have to do the retrieval!" 

She cackled and returned to being a cat, preening. 

Tessai's eyes glittered with humor. 

"It seems my companion has left. I guess that means I get to eat all these cookies myself."

"How dare you!"

Yoruichi immediately lunged for one of the cookies

-

They made a bit of a mess.

They rushed to clean it up when they saw how dismayed Ururu was to see the wrecked kitchen. 


	7. Yoruichi and Kisuke

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Yoruichi: Wtf did you think you were doing?  
> Kisuke: My best.

Yoruichi and Kisuke were tending to the shop when he finally broached the subject. 

After his breakdown last week, she had been trying to give him the space to bring it up himself. 

"I'm sorry. "

Yoruichi glanced behind her to see that Kisuke was turned away and clearly uncomfortable. 

"Do you want to talk about it?"

"I want to try. It would be best to start from a version of a beginning."

Yoruichi hopped down from the counter, trotted up to Kisuke, and pawed at his leg. 

Kisuke closed down the shop, sat down on the floor, let her curl up in his lap, and began to talk.

-

"There is war on the horizon. If we stay as we are, we will need Ichigo-san and his friend's to have a chance of success. I was okay with that. They have already fought enemies most could never dream of. 

And then, Ichigo kicked Isshin out. That was fine. The problem began the day after when you inadvertently forced me to face reality. You were pissed about how the teens were more mature than their fathers, the adults who were supposed to take care of them. At the time you were just ranting to yourself, but one of the phrases you yelled stuck with me long after you were finished demolishing the training room.

'They are children. Their adults should be the ones to protect them, not causing them more problems.'

When you said that, it made me uneasy. 

I never really had adults to protect me, and your adults were more interested in using you or trying to replace you than protect you. and, I guess for me, the norm was to feed, clothe and train a child you see potential in and use them as a weapon. That's how you and I were treated.

Ichigo, Uryuu, Chad, and Orihime, they do not deserve to be treated as weapons."

"So you had another morality fueled existential crisis because you have done just that multiple times?"

"Exactly.

I wanted to find a way that we could be strong enough to protect them. The fact that you don't have access to your bankai was the first thing I thought of. I wanted to see if I could find a way to make it possible for you to have access to your full power without your zanpakuto."

"You fucking did not."

"No need to freak out, I made no progress."

"Thank the Soul King for small mercies. How about this, Kisuke. You tell Tessai that you want to become stronger to protect our teenagers, and remind him we are here if he needs help. You should focus on doing what you can to improve yourself and become stronger. If you need help in any way, I expect you to come to us."

"Right."

"Just remember that in order to be strong, you need to take care of yourself"

"Pfft. If you say so."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is the end of plot relevant oneshots. Any further one shots in this fic will just be fluff and/or a further explorations of characters.


End file.
